National Grid storm updates go mobile

PROVIDENCE – In an effort to keep customers apprised on storm information and updates during a power outage, National Grid has gone mobile.

Customers that access nationalgrid.com on their mobile devices will now be able to stay connected about service interruptions, get outage information and view restoration information by area.

“Customers want and deserve to have real-time service information at critical times,” Timothy F. Horan, president of National Grid Rhode Island, said in a statement. “With more and more of our customers using cell phones and other mobile devices to communicate and stay informed, we need to do more to meet expectations. Development of this application is another step being taken by National Grid to do that.”

Once on the mobile site, customers can view outage maps, report an outage, check the status of an outage, view restoration progress and gain access to important storm safety tips. The site also features a frequently asked questions section and contact information for National Grid’s customer service team.

According to the utility company, the outage maps featured on the mobile site are compatible with the latest version of Microsoft Bing Maps and the website offers direct mobile support for iPhone, iPad, Android and Windows based phones that have IE9 browsers and up.

Future plans of the mobile website include features such as bill payment and meter reading submissions.

In addition to viewing the mobile website, National Grid customers can stay tuned in my opting into broadcast texts alerts by text messaging the word STORM to NGRID (64743). Email alerts are also available and customers can follow National Grid on Twitter at @nationalgridus or friend National Grid MA, National Grid RI or National Grid NY on Facebook.

Get the most up-to-date data on the Rhode Island and southern Massachusetts business community from the PBN List Center. Download and purchase PBN Lists as well as the complete Book of Lists in Excel format.